


Struck

by BigJBonk



Series: Perfect AU [12]
Category: OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes
Genre: A very brief one, Boxmore Trio as a plot device, Carol trusts her kids, Carol's A+ Parenting, Dendy gives bad advice, Dendy is having way too much fun with this, Drama, Enid is the Mom Friend, Gen, I hope so. He's great, I need help with tags seriously someone help, Lightning shenanigans, Miserable late-winter weather, Mr. Gar is a good boss, My Tumblr followers will catch it lol, Oneshot, P.K.O. is a big chicken, P.K.O. is a mess, P.K.O. is moody, Rad is kind of dumb, Storms, They're a disaster, Tumblr reference, Unintentional electric puns, Will I ever write him in a positive light?, inventions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-04-03
Packaged: 2020-01-01 13:35:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,223
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18335357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BigJBonk/pseuds/BigJBonk
Summary: P.K.O. gets struck by lightning during a particularly nasty storm, and suffers from some unfortunate side effects.





	Struck

**Author's Note:**

> So, how's about that OKKO drought, eh?
> 
> I am SO sorry about how long this took. I officially have two jobs right now (one of which involves animating, which is FANTASTIC), so obviously that doesn't leave me with a lot of time to write. That, and I discovered that I love RotTMNT, which also made me remember how much I loved TMNT as a kid, so now I'm absorbing that good good content whenever I can. But not to worry, I still have plans for this AU. I'm not giving up yet!
> 
> This is another one of those what-if scenarios, so it's a little filler-y. Hopefully still interesting though. I know at least a few of you have been waiting for this.
> 
> Try to count the unintentional electric puns in here. The number might SHOCK you! Heheheheh!

The weather took a pretty awful turn one Wednesday afternoon. While it wasn't warm in any sense of the word, most of the snow had long since melted, leaving behind freezing cold puddles and murky brown slush. The sky was stormy and gray, sheets of rain falling at a sharp angle. Thunder rumbled in the distance. Needless to say, it was absolutely horrid.

So why  _wouldn't_  the Voxmore Trio choose that day to attack the plaza?

P.K.O. sidestepped a clawed thrust from Raymond, retaliating with a palm strike to his chin. The green robot was pushed in Rad's direction, while Shannon darted towards the child with her sawblades spinning. P.K.O. jumped back to give himself room, but slipped on a small pile of slush as he fired an energy blast at her, the glancing blow only managing to topple the robot rather than take out one of her weapons as intended.

Normally P.K.O. would be having an easy time fighting the robots off, but the terrible weather made everything more difficult than it needed to be. Even with his orange rain jacket and his rubber boots, getting around properly was nearly impossible. The robots, on the other hand, were in top form. They appeared to be made of a different material than normal, most likely to counteract the rain, if P.K.O. had to guess. Venomous's contribution, no doubt. Nevertheless, they were being even more annoying than usual.

Upon realizing she wasn't going to get close, Shannon traded places with Darrell, lunging for Enid as her brother charged up his arm cannon. P.K.O. dodged the incoming fire, but never fully recovered his footing, scrambling left and right in an attempt to dodge the energy bullets. "I've got you now, shrimp!" Darrell taunted.

"Uh, a little help here?!" P.K.O. called as one blast narrowly missed the side of his head, but it was no use. Shannon and Enid were trading blows that barely glanced off of each other, while Rad and Raymond had locked arms in a contest of brute strength. They weren't going to be able to help any time soon.

Thunder roared overhead, and P.K.O. gulped. Instead of trying to weave around the next energy blast that came his way, he jumped into the air, hovering several feet above the battle. Grinding his teeth, Darrell adjusted his aim, but P.K.O. was easily able to dodge the attacks when there were no puddles to stumble through. When thunder boomed once again, louder than before, P.K.O. cast a wary glance at the clouds. He couldn't stay up there forever. He had to finish this, and quickly.

After successfully dodging another blast, P.K.O. launched one of his own, hitting Darrell square in the chest. The robot fell to the ground with a pained squawk, giving P.K.O. the opening he needed to find his footing. The fusion began his descent, wanting to get to the ground before the storm got any closer-

There was a blinding flash of light, an excruciating pain coursing through his entire body, and then his vision went black.

(~)

Everything came to P.K.O. in bits and pieces. First was the fact that he was laying in a puddle face-up. Next was a painful buzzing in his limbs, as if they had fallen asleep. He could feel the beginnings of a headache, thrumming in the same manner as the rest of his body. Then came his vision, blurry at first but sharpening quickly. And then, finally, came his hearing.

"...O... P.K.O... hear me?... P.K.O.!" Enid was shouting, looking more scared than P.K.O. had ever seen her.

The fusion groaned and sat up, clutching his head. "Oh, man... Enid, what happened...?"

"Oh thank Cob he's alive," Enid sighed.

Rad popped in from his peripheral vision, arms spread wide. "Dude, you just got hit by lightning!"

P.K.O. blinked owlishly. "I... what? I did?" Well, that certainly explained why his body was all sore. "Wow. Wow, that really sucked."

"Yeah, you were even smoking for a second there," Rad chortled.

Enid elbowed the alien with a sharp glare, which softened when she turned to face the fusion again. "Are you okay, P.K.O.? that looked like a pretty bad shock."

"You didn't fall in love with Enid at first sight, did you?" Rad joked.

P.K.O. gave him an affronted look. "...No? I'm a human, not a robot."

"You're snarky, I guess that's a good sign," Enid breathed. "How are you feeling, little buddy?"

The fusion frowned, considering himself. He still felt a little sore, but most of the pain had already ebbed away. "Actually, I feel fine. Everything hurts a bit, but I  _was_  just fighting evil robots. Speaking of which, where are they?"

"Oh, them? We beat them up already," Rad replied with a nonchalant wave of his hand.

"Oh..."

"Don't sweat it, kid," Enid told him. "But maybe you should take the rest of the day off? Getting struck by lightning blows, I'm sure Mr. Gar would understand."

P.K.O. twiddled his fingers. "Are you sure? I'd hate to make you guys clean up by yourselves."

"It's not a big deal," Rad cut in. "It's only a few robots. You should totally take the rest of the afternoon off. A bit of advice, little dude: if you can get any time off of work, take it."

P.K.O. doubted that the alien's advice was sound, but he got the message. "If you say so. I'll see if my mom can take me home."

"Cool." Enid rose to her full height, helping P.K.O. to his feet as she did. "You should probably go wait for her inside. No point standing out here in the rain. Let us handle things out here."

P.K.O. frowned, still not feeling sure. "Okay..."

Fifteen minutes later, Carol arrived at the bodega to pick up her son. She fretted over him the whole way to the tank-car. "I heard what happened today, Peekaboo. Are you feeling okay? Does it hurt anywhere? Do I need to take you to a hospital?"

"I'm  _fine,_  mom," P.K.O. groused, rolling his eyes. "It was just a bolt of lightning. I'm not hurt or anything."

"If you're sure," said Carol, sounding anything but. "But if you feel like something's wrong, you tell me right away, alright?"

"I will," P.K.O. told her.

The terrible weather made the drive somewhat hazardous, but the two managed to get home without incident. The first thing P.K.O. did upon getting inside was shed his coat and boots, more than happy to be rid of them; he hadn't realized how much water his boots had accumulated. As an afterthought, he decided to put on his PJs, climbing into bed and checking on his social media.

As he was composing a post about his day, his eyes started to drift shut. He hadn't realized how tired he was during the excitement that was the past hour, but now that he had a moment to relax in a warm house with dry clothes, he felt absolutely exhausted. A quick glance at the clock showed that it was just past six. Dinner would probably be ready soon, but surely a quick nap wouldn't hurt. It would probably do him good to get some rest, anyway.

(~)

P.K.O. startled awake at the sound of his alarm. He hit the snooze button in a rush, quickly silencing the small machine. Once he'd had a moment to recover from the rude awakening, he let out a mighty yawn, stretching his arms as far as they would reach. He hadn't meant to sleep through the night, but he didn't mind. He was feeling pretty good.

But alas, it was K.O.'s turn for the day. Oh, well. At least he was going to have an awesome story to tell their classmates. Wishing that he could have been the one to tell them, P.K.O. closed his eyes, willing himself into his subconscious.

But nothing happened.

P.K.O. frowned in confusion. That was usually all it took. Maybe he was more tired than he thought. Or maybe he was more awake? Still, he tried again, but was met with the same results.

The fusion grew concerned. Something was wrong. Why couldn't he get to the subconscious? He'd never had a problem before. "K.O.?" he asked aloud. "I'm having some trouble out here. Do you think you could disconnect and take control from me?" He waited, but there was no answer, nor did he find that he'd switched places with his friendliest counterpart. "Hello? We didn't trade days or anything, right? So come on out." Still no response. "...T.K.O.?" Nothing.

P.K.O. didn't get it. Could they not hear him? No, that was impossible. They were synchronized, so they  _had_  to have heard him. So why weren't they answering him?

Growing more anxious by the second, P.K.O. reached deep inside of himself, but to his horror, where that connection should have been, there was nothing. He couldn't find them. It was like they had disappeared, but there was no way that could be right. They were  _always_  there. But if he couldn't get to the mindscape, and he couldn't feel K.O. or T.K.O., then... then... well, he had no idea what that meant. Obviously nothing good.

So he panicked.

" _MOMMY!_ "

Carol was there before the last syllable had come out, eyes frantic. "Mommy's here, what happened?!"

"Mom, they're gone!"

"What? Who's gone?"

"K.O. and T.K.O.!" P.K.O. cried, tears springing to his eyes. "It's K.O.'s turn today, but I can't give it to him because I can't feel him anywhere, and I can't feel T.K.O. either, and I don't know why, but it's  _wrong,_  and, and-!"

"Woah, slow down, kiddo," Carol cut in, voice urgent but gentle. "Just take a deep breath, and explain to me what's going on."

P.K.O. clamped his mouth shut, taking a moment to wipe at his eyes. Then, with a loud sniff, he tried again, more calmly but no less teary. "When I woke up, I tried to go to the subconscious so I could trade places with K.O., but I couldn't for some reason. So I tried asking him to come out, but that didn't work, and T.K.O. didn't answer, either. Normally I can feel them, and now it feels like... like they're... sniff... gone..." The tears were already threatening to spill again.

"Well, it's not like they can just up and walk away," Carol rationalized. "If you're out here, then that means they're working to keep you that way, right?" With a weak sniffle, P.K.O. nodded. "Right. So that means they're still in there somewhere. Maybe they're just... stuck."

"...Stuck?" P.K.O. repeated. "You mean like that one time I wouldn't let them unfuse?"

Carol gave him a strained smile. "Sure, like that. And you said you don't know what caused it?" The fusion shook his head. "Hmm... Well, I'm sure we can figure it out. Maybe you should take the day off of school, and then we'll-"

"No!" P.K.O. said quickly. "I mean, it's fine. Yesterday was pretty rough, so... maybe everyone's too tired to unfuse yet? I bet I'll be able to do it once we've all woken up a bit more, so it would be silly to miss school over it, wouldn't it?"

Carol eyed her son dubiously, and then sighed. "I want to disagree, but when it comes to this fusion stuff, you would know better than me. So how about this. We'll treat today just like any other day, and if it's still a problem tomorrow, you're staying here so we can sort it out. How does that sound?"

P.K.O. shrugged, still sullen. "I guess that's fair."

His mother smiled, giving him an encouraging punch to the shoulder. "French toast?"

The fusion nodded, managing a small smile of his own. "French toast."

(~)

P.K.O. spent every spare moment he had that morning trying to unfuse. He tried while brushing his teeth, he tried after getting dressed, he tried during the car ride, and he even tried just before class, but to no avail. No matter how much he concentrated, or how much he relaxed, or how tightly he closed his eyes, he always found himself still in the real world. After yet another failed attempt during lunch, he sighed. He was starting to think that something was really wrong.

"I wasn't aware that it was your turn today, P.K.O.," Dendy said without preamble, setting her lunchbox down on his desk.

"Oh. Hey Dendy," P.K.O. mumbled, barely glancing up. "Yeah, it's supposed to be K.O.'s turn today. But for some reason, I haven't been able to unfuse... I think I'm stuck."

"Stuck?" Dendy parroted with a tilt of her head. "I didn't know that you could get stuck."

"Neither did I," P.K.O. replied. "At least, not like this."

The kappa hummed inquisitively. "How did this happen?"

"I don't know!" the fusion suddenly exploded, throwing his arms up. "All I know is that I woke up like this, and I have no idea how to fix it, okay?!" Belatedly, he realized that Dendy was leaning away from him after his outburst, as was anyone else who was still in the classroom. P.K.O. ducked his head, blushing sheepishly. "...Sorry. I guess I'm just frustrated... and a little worried."

"It's quite alright," Dendy told him, relaxing once more. "I'm glad that you have confided in me, P.K.O. I think that I may be able to help you."

P.K.O. gasped, eyes twinkling. "Really? You can help me?"

"I can definitely try." Dendy adjusted her goggles. "If you somehow managed to get yourself stuck, then it should be possible to get you unstuck as well. It is simply a matter of determining the cause and duplicating or reversing its effects. So if anything strange occurred between now and the last time I saw you, it would be wise to tell me."

To that, P.K.O. sarcastically replied, "Does getting hit by lightning count?"

Dendy stared at him long and hard. "...You got hit by lightning."

"Yeah, yesterday at work. You don't think that's what did it, do you? Come to think of it, lightning is always the culprit when weird stuff happens in cartoons."

Getting over her initial shock, Dendy frowned, rubbing her chin. "Though I would advise against using cartoons as a point of reference, without further evidence, I would agree that the lightning strike is the most likely reason for your current problem. If you'll meet me in the lab after school, I can simulate the strike and-"

"Wait wait wait, maybe the lightning  _isn't_  what caused this," P.K.O. stammered, hands waving frantically. "We don't  _know_  it was the lightning, so it could be anything, right? Anything between school and bedtime, anyway. So maybe we should see if it was something else before we resort to, you know, pumping me full of electricity?"

"...While your evasive tactics are glaringly obvious, I must admit that your logic is somewhat sound," Dendy sighed. "What was the last thing you did before going to bed?"

P.K.O. hummed to himself, sticking out his tongue. "Well, last night I was looking at social media on my phone."

"Then that should be easy," said Dendy. "Try doing that again tonight, and if that fails, come see me tomorrow so that we may look into alternative solutions."

"My mom wants me to stay home tomorrow if I'm still stuck," P.K.O. told her. "But if I tell her you're helping me, I think she'll let me come."

"Excellent." Dendy beamed. "Be sure that you're on your phone tonight before going to bed, P.K.O."

"I will." As the bell rang, the two nodded at each other, and class resumed.

(~)

For P.K.O., that day was a bizarre one. Being unable to return to his subconscious even hours into his shift, he'd started to notice the effects of K.O. and T.K.O.'s absence. For one, he hadn't realized how much their emotions had colored his own. After several times witnessing customers commit the crime of setting an item down in the wrong place, he didn't feel eager to correct them, nor did he get the urge to throw the item at the back of their head. All he felt was a sort of resigned irritation as he cleaned up after them. It was a bit underwhelming, really.

The other change he noticed came with the arrival of the Voxmore Trio. The day before, it had been all that P.K.O. could do to keep his feet under him, making the robots an actual challenge. Today, they couldn't lay a claw on him. His strength, his speed, and his reflexes were all higher than they had likely ever been, the overcast but dry weather failing to hinder his mobility. P.K.O. even found himself laughing as he darted through the narrow space between Raymond's torso and outstretched arm to deliver a devastating kick to his back. For the first time, he wasn't functionally tethered down by something he couldn't control. He could move as he pleased. Was this what it was like for everyone else? It was such a liberating feeling!

But it was also lonely.

P.K.O. stared blankly at his phone screen that night, sighing after yet another failed attempt at connecting with K.O. and T.K.O. He still couldn't feel their presence at all. He knew, logically, that they had to be buried in their subconscious somewhere, but their absence still left him feeling despondent. But he wasn't giving up. Not yet.

The fusion stayed up late into the night, staring at the illuminated screen until his vision swam. When he decided he'd finally had enough, he set the phone down next to the bed and laid down, falling into an uneasy slumber.

(~)

"I suppose your phone wasn't the solution," said Dendy.

"No..." P.K.O. sighed, head drooping. "I'd really hoped that was it, though."

"Then perhaps after school we can try replicating the lightning strike," Dendy suggested.

"No!" P.K.O. cried. "...Er, there's still other things we haven't tried. Like, uh... my boots! My boots were full of water."

Dendy gave him a long, deadpan stare. "...I don't think that would do much of anything, P.K.O., let alone suppress K.O. and T.K.O."

"Yeah, maybe not," the fusion agreed. "But it could be! It wouldn't hurt to try it, right?"

The kappa sighed wearily. "I suppose not."

And so, after school, they tried it. Dendy took off her boots and filled them at a nearby water fountain, then took them with her to her lab, where she let P.K.O. put them on. He shuddered at the chill, and then he closed his eyes. After a few seconds, he deflated, taking off the waterlogged boots. "It didn't work."

"I told you it wouldn't," Dendy said pointedly, dumping the boots out at the lab shower before slipping them on.

P.K.O. pulled a face at the squishing sound. "Isn't that uncomfortable?"

"I actually find the sensation quite enjoyable," Dendy replied.

"Right. You're a kappa."

"Indeed," Dendy hummed. "Now, did you have any other ideas to reverse the effects?"

"Um... Oh! I fell a lot because of all the ice."

"Hmm..." After a moment of consideration, Dendy gave P.K.O. a hard shove, sending him stumbling and falling to the tiled floor.

The fusion angrily clambered to his feet, rubbing his sore noggin. "Hey, what'd you go and do that for?!"

"You didn't revert to a separated state," Dendy informed him.

"...Yeah, well, a little warning would have been nice."

"Warning you may have nullified the effect," said Dendy, "seeing as you would likely have had little to no warning under the relevant circumstances."

P.K.O. glared. "Why do I feel like you're enjoying this?"

The kappa ignored his question. "Is there anything else you can think of that could have triggered the change?"

"...No," P.K.O. admitted after a moment. Still, he perked up a second later. "But wait, there's still one thing we haven't tried. Try making me upset! That's always been good at splitting K.O. and T.K.O. up, right? I'm sure it'll work!"

Dendy, surprisingly, hesitated at that. "Erm, I already made a promise to myself to never again use emotional manipulation against you or the others."

"Yeah, before, that was bad," P.K.O. told her. "But now I'm giving you permission. I want you to say whatever you can to make me as angry as possible. T.K.O. will get over it, I promise."

"I'm not sure if that's-"

"Please, Dendy!"

The kappa was quiet for a moment longer, and then she sighed. "If you're certain..." She cleared her throat, drawing herself to her full height. "Ahem... P.K.O., your existence is meaningless. You are a fabrication, a mere shadow of your components. Your life is a lie, and you will never truly amount to anything. You are completely and utterly worthless." She paused. "Did it work?"

"No," P.K.O. wilted. "Ow, straight to the insecurity. You really don't pull your punches, Dendy."

"I'm sorry," said Dendy. "I hoped that would work. I didn't mean any of it."

"It's okay. I know you didn't."

"Does this mean that it's time to try a controlled shock?" Dendy asked.

P.K.O. opened his mouth to argue, but he couldn't come up with anything else. He was out of ideas. He grimaced, knowing that he wouldn't enjoy what was to come. "...Yeah. But how are you going to be able to-?"

"Done." P.K.O. startled, and when he turned to look at Dendy, it turned out that she had already constructed a spacious platform, as well as an ominous-looking death-ray of a contraption mounted to the ceiling.

The fusion gaped at the invention, suppressing a nervous gulp. "How is it even physically possible for you to build something that fast?!"

"Trade secret," Dendy replied. "Now, simply step onto the platform, and I will initiate a nonlethal shock. However, I must warn you that the strike will be incredibly painful. That is, unless you fall unconscious before the pain signals reach your brain."

" _That's_  reassuring," P.K.O. griped.

"I wasn't expecting that to be reassuring, but I'm glad that it was," Dendy smiled.

"No, I was being sarcastic-"

"We can begin whenever you are ready." This time, P.K.O. did gulp; it was now or never, he supposed. He really hoped that this would work. And if it didn't, well... Better not to think about it.

P.K.O. stepped onto the platform, trying not to look directly at the ray-gun; it looked far too much like a robot's arm cannon for his tastes, especially with it pointed right at him. The bright red X marking where he needed to stand wasn't helping, either. "Um, are you sure this will work?"

"No," Dendy replied honestly, booting up the machine. "But if I have learned anything since becoming K.O.'s friend, it is that low odds and no guarantee do not equal impossibility. So I am  _confident_  that this will work."

"...I  _think_  that makes me feel better?"

"Initiating shock in ten seconds."

The machine began to thrum ominously, the current traveling up the bulky arm in coils before culminating at the center of the ray. P.K.O. stared like a deer in headlights as the little orb grew brighter and brighter, the hum raising in pitch and volume. As Dendy counted down, it was all the fusion could do to resist the urge to bolt.

"Three... Two... One... Administering the controlled shock."

P.K.O. barely had time to screw his eyes shut before he was hit with the familiar agony, and then all sensation unanimously and abruptly cut off.

(~)

P.K.O. came to slowly, every square inch of his body buzzing painfully with the remnants of the shock. He could smell burnt hair, seeing as there was no puddle to lay in to mute the scent. The blurry image in front of him slowly but surely solidified to reveal Dendy, looming over him with a bulky gray-white object in each hand, both of them whining at an aggravating frequency.

The fusion quickly scooted away before sitting up, the sudden movement jarring his headache. "Ugh, ow... Uh, Dendy? What are those?"

Dendy glanced down at the things she was holding. "Oh. These are defibrillators. I activated them in case you didn't wake up."

"So if the electricity killed me, you were going to try to revive me with  _more_  electricity?!" P.K.O. shouted incredulously.

"It has been known to work," Dendy replied.

Indignant rage flared in P.K.O.'s chest. "That is so  _stupid!_  That would just make things worse, wouldn't it?! What even made you think you'd need them, anyway?! Nonlethal, you said it yourself! I can't believe you would  _lie_  about something... you thought would... kill me..." Indignant rage? He was a little furious with the kappa, yes, but that felt... closer. The rest felt almost detached. It was foreign, and yet so, so familiar... Could it be...?

There was a flash, and there T.K.O. stood, shell-shocked. A moment later, and another flash, this time K.O. standing in his place, eyes practically sparkling. With one more flash, P.K.O. was there once more, face split in a watery grin. He grabbed Dendy by her midsection, spinning her around several times, and not letting go once he stopped. "Thank you thank you  _thank you so much,_  Dendy! You did it! You really brought them back!"

The kappa gave him an awkward pat on the shoulder. "Of course. Anything to help my best friends."

P.K.O. finally released Dendy, staggering back with a look of utter  _relief_  on his face. "I can feel them here... They're really back. Wow, I didn't realize how much I missed them. I really owe you one big time, Dendy!"

"You do not owe me a thing," Dendy said. "It really was the least I could do. Had the roles been reversed, I'm sure that you would do your best to do the same for me."

"But I feel like I should be doing  _something,_ " P.K.O. insisted. "Maybe on Monday I could get you a bag of those fish-flavored cheese puffs you like so much? Because I don't think you realize how important to me it was that you did that."

Dendy opened her mouth to protest, but closed it with a sigh, a small smile gracing her lips. "Very well. Cheese puffs will do nicely."

(~)

The first thing P.K.O. did upon leaving school was call in sick to work. Mr. Gar had no issues, being fully aware of the fusion's predicament- although, P.K.O. didn't bother informing him that it had been resolved. He just couldn't wait to get home so that he could check up on his doppelgangers. He ran the entire way, barely making it through the front door before throwing himself at the couch and conking out.

The second he was in the subconscious, he whipped his head to and fro, searching for his counterparts. He found them at the center of the clearing, and rushed forwards. K.O. and T.K.O. quickly and clumsily detached themselves from the machine so that they could meet him halfway, all three wrapping each other in an enormous hug.

"I'm so glad to see you guys!" P.K.O. bawled. "I tried to get to you sooner, but I couldn't feel you anywhere, and I couldn't come here to find you! I thought I was never gonna see you again!"

"It's okay, P.K.O.," K.O. consoled him, squeezing a little tighter. "We're all here now, and that's what counts."

"What even happened to you?" the fusion asked, puling away so that he could look between the two. "You had to have been synchronized somehow, but I couldn't sense you at all. Why didn't one of you try to come out?"

"It was less of a synchronization," said T.K.O., "and more of a dark and unfeeling abyss, of which there was no escape."

K.O. whirled around, balking at his alter ego. "Wait, you too?!"

"I expect angsty theatrics from T.K.O.," commented P.K.O., "but you too, K.O.? What's going on? What  _happened?_ "

K.O. twiddled his fingers, face tight. "Well, after you hit Darrell, everything suddenly got really dark, and I couldn't see or hear anything. I couldn't even talk! It was  _really_  scary!"

"Same here," T.K.O. contributed, grimacing. "Well, not the scary part, but to be totally honest, I think I preferred the cage."

Upon hearing the two speak, P.K.O.'s face fell, expression grim. "...I am so, so sorry. You guys were there for almost two days! If I had known you were  _gone,_  I could have tried harder to get you out! I  _knew_  the shock should have worked, but I got scared! If I'd known what had really happened to you, I could have had it fixed  _yesterday-_ "

"Hey, hey, it's alright," K.O. soothed the fusion before he could work himself up too much. "It's okay, you didn't know. We're not mad at you, promise."

"That place," said T.K.O. "That's where you go when we don't fuse, isn't it?" After a moment, P.K.O. nodded.

K.O. gasped. "Really?! Then no wonder you wanted to stay here so bad!" His face settled into a firm pout. "Well, you never have to go back there again. I promise."

P.K.O. managed a weak smile. "Yeah, I know. And I won't let it happen to you guys again, either. And if I ever get struck by lightning again, at least now I know how to fix it."

"Good," T.K.O. grunted. "Because if I ever end up there again, I'll claw my way out just so I can give you a piece of my mind."

P.K.O. laughed at that. "Fair enough."

After that, the fusion handed control to K.O. for the remainder of the day, deciding to head to bed early. He zapped himself into his PJs, hopping onto his comforter. From there, he looked around the room, taking in the beige walls and music posters. The floor was littered with clothes and toys he hadn't bothered putting away, and a few dirty plates were stacked on his nightstand, obscuring the small blue alarm clock.

His room was a mess, but right now, it was probably the most comfortable place in the world.

**Author's Note:**

> Man, I rushed the heck out of that ending. But it had been too long since I had even had a chance to pick up my notebook, so dangit I was finishing this story!
> 
> Well, my next story for the AU will probably be a long time coming. I want Nanini to be a prominent character in it, and I hesitate to write her until Whacky Jaxxys comes out so that I can write her accurately. So in the meantime, I'll probably write a RotTMNT oneshot that's been stewing around in my head for like a week, and hopefully by the time I finish it the episode will have aired and I can continue here. If that takes too long, I've got a K.O.-centric short story in mind to fill in the space while you wait. Man, everything is just so hectic HHHHHHHHHHH
> 
> Well, hopefully I'll be seeing you guys sooner rather than later!


End file.
